Doctors: No more McDonald's in hospitals

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BOSTON, Md., April 15 (UPI) -- A group of doctors has called on the administrators of 22 hospitals in the United States to remove McDonald's restaurants from their facilities.

The nation's top pediatricians, cardiologists and child psychologists have joined Corporate Accountability International to pressure hospital administrators to end contracts with the fast-food restaurant, the Boston-based organization said in a news release Tuesday.

"Kids are being treated for diet-related conditions like diabetes on one floor in the hospital and given the wrong message by being offered the world's most recognized junk food brand on another floor in the hospital," said Dr. Francine Kaufman, former president of the American Diabetes Association. "The practice earns McDonald's an undeserved association with healthfulness among parents and children alike … and it should be curtailed."

Corporate Accountability International sent a letter to the 22 hospitals, pointing to Parkland Health and Hospital System in Dallas, and Children's Hospital in Philadelphia, both of which the organization says sent a powerful message by ending their contracts with McDonald's.

"McDonald's has a long history of putting a healthy label on an inherently unhealthy brand," said Sara Deon, Corporate Accountability International's Value [the] Meal campaign director. "It has used healthcare providers and institutions to help promote this image for decades. Today, administrators have the opportunity to provide a healthier food environment for the children and families they care for."